Flex wrote:There are a few things that are institutional issues brought forth by this.

Journalistic Ethics:

LOLOLOLOL

Seriously though, some of the quotes I've heard attributed to him and his family (as you pointed out) seem pretty damning. Granted, I don't know their full context, I was just hearing folks talk about it on the radio, but if they're true it's hard to imagine that he wasn't involved in this and not a victim.

I have always been annoyed at helmet to helmet hits seemingly always going against the defender since it always seem to be the ball carrier ducking into the hit causing the helmet to helmet hit in the first place. The Pollard/Ridley hit shows this clearly. Ridley ducks into the hit driving his helmet into Pollard's, luckily no penalty was called.

We live in a society where people born on third base constantly try to steal second, yet we expect people born with two strikes against them to hit a homerun on the first pitch.

That wasn't a questionable hit. Helmet to helmet hits aren't illegal unless the player is defenseless, and Ridley was not only not defenseless but the instigator. There's no possible way they could enforce helmet to helmet hits against runners who are trying to make the opponent miss and who often lower their heads themselves.

The rule annoys me too because defenders getting blocked can be vulnerable, but by rule, I don't think defenders are ever considered defenseless. It seems to only apply to players making a play on the ball, or the qb because they are in a vulnerable position. That shot Pitta took would have drawn a flag if a Ravens were on defense.

I'm glad that the Harbaugh family is going to enjoy the Super Bowl so much. I'm trying to find something to root for.

So far, It's that maybe Randy Moss, the new, quiet, and "grown up" Randy Moss will get the one thing that would give his career the "cherry on top".

I honestly think I'll be rooting for the niners, if only because their win will keep the worst "year" in sports from happening to Cleveland Fans. Lebron wins NBA Title, and then the Ravens win the Super Bowl? The only way it could have been worse? VMart doesn't blow out his knee, and he leads the Tigers to the World Series win.

Koatanga wrote:Call me insensitive, but how the hell does a legally blind man cover a baseball game?

He probably lacks peripheral vision. My mother-in-law was legally blind (both from tunnel vision and acuity) but with glasses on she could watch a baseball game. He may miss some fine details, but given his familiarity with sport, he can probably cover it just fine.

And the discussion has come up now, since Modell has made the finalist ballot for the Hall of Fame. Cleveland fans are up in arms, looking like idiots, talking about how Modell doesn't deserve the hall of fame because he "stole" our team.

It's his fault the Browns Suck now. It's his fault the Browns have never been to the Super Bowl

Ok. I could understand the venom for a while. His bad business hurt the city. It took the team. I get it. It's his fault we didn't have football for a couple of years. It's his fault we had to start over.

but. here we are, 17 years after he moved the team, and we are still blaming him. Why? It's not his fault that Randy Lerner wasn't a football fan. It's not his fault that Lerner hired Holmgren who didn't do enough to get us good coaching. It stopped being his fault a few years ago.

These same people blame Lebron. Hate him, and have the righteous desire to see his hair line recede completely, and his brain fall out.

At some point, it's no longer the fault of the person who left, but the people that remain. I'm tired of blaming those who left. Can't we just move on, and focus on the future? Modell's legacy is far more than just the Browns, but you wont here about it here in Cleveland, because we are preoccupied by the hatred of the man who took the team from us.

And I fear that if we do let him in the hall of fame, there will be dumbasses at the ceremony. There are already people on Twitter who want to do bad things to cars with Maryland plates at the HOF induction if he gets put in.

With Modell as a finalist for the Hall of Fame this year, the local sports world has exploded into this barely read/listen/watch-able menagerie of frothing at the mouth crazies.

So. What do you think? In? Out?

His team's win loss record as an owner is just about .600. That includes both Ravens, and Browns. He won one NFL Championship early, with the Browns, and a Super Bowl with the Ravens. He was instrumental, working with Rozelle on the creation of Monday Night Football. He negotiated the first ever CBA between the players and the league. He hired the first African American GM in League History.

He was a terrible businessman. He is one of the principal reasons why the Indians left Municipal StadiumHe moved a franchise after requesting (and being approved for) $175m in public funding for a new stadium. (He actually broke the news of the move the day before the vote, which still passed) He was woefully bad with money. Andre Rison's tenure in Cleveland, and the loans he took to get him are evidence.

It's hard to separate fact from fiction/overblown stuff around here. I think he should be in. To me, being a terrible businessman, and being great for the game of football are two different things. By local accounts, the truth of the matter was he bought the Browns with borrowed money, made a lot of money, spent it poorly, and sold the Ravens to avoid personal bankruptcy. He then ripped the heart of a fanbase out when he moved the team, leaving them incensed at the mention of his name.

For me, the MNF work, the CBA, and Ozzie Newsome are all incredibly significant contributions to the game, and not having him in the hall of fame just doesn't seem right.